A Greater spotted eagle at Al Jahra, Kuwait during winter 2021-2022.
6490 is an adult female Greater spotted eagle that was captured and fitted with a tracking device on 15 December 2021 at Al Jahra, Kuwait. It remained at Al Jahra for the winter, and commenced spring migration on 27 March 2022. Migration took it through southern Iraq, Iran, Turkmenistan, and Kazakhstan. It crossed the Kazakhstan border on 15 April. Straight line distance between Al Jahra and its current location is about 3700 km, spanning about 30 degrees of latitude! See map below.
Spring migration 2022 of an adult female Greater spotted eagle between Kuwait and Russia (© KEL/KFAS).
Since arriving in Russia, it has wandered quite a bit (See map below). Although 6490 is an adult, it does not appear that it will breed in this year because it has yet to settle into a limited home range. Currently it is about 115 km NNE of the Russian city of Tobolsk, which has its own interesting history. A close look at 6490’s locations shows it to be frequenting wet forest areas, typical habitat for this species, whether or not it is breeding.
Movements of an adult female Greater spotted eagle (6490) since arriving in Russia on 15 April 2022 (© KEL/KFAS).
